Friday News Roundup

It’s Friday. Time for the Roundup.

“As Inclusive as We’ve Always Been”: Districts Resist Ed Dept’s Warning on Race (The 74)

School districts across the country seem to be ignoring the Trump administration’s war on diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The 74 reported this week that,

“In May, the Long Beach Unified School District in California will open the Center of Black Student Excellence, which it calls a ‘bold step in the district’s ongoing efforts to address systemic harm’ by providing extra support for Black students.”

“Leaders say they have no plans to hit pause on the project despite a February 14^th letter from the U.S. Department of Education that warns against efforts to ‘preference certain racial groups.’ The strongly worded message from Craig Trainor, the top civil rights official at the department, said schools could be investigated for treating ‘students differently on the basis of race.’”

“The Long Beach community asked for ‘a space that lifts the experience of Black youth,’ said Deputy Superintendent Tiffany Brown, adding that the district has a ‘commitment to listen to those voices.’”

“Long Beach is not alone. While many school leaders bristled at the letter’s tone, several left-leaning states and districts have since countered Trainor’s threats with tough statements of their own.”

“’We’re going to be as inclusive as we’ve always been,’ said Gustavo Balderas, superintendent of the Beaverton School District in Oregon. He called the department’s letter ‘an attempt to bully’ districts. ‘Let’s not be hyper-reactive to things that come out right now.’”

Voters in Windham Decide the Fate of Their Shuttered Elementary School (Vermont Public)

Following up on a story ABPTL covered awhile back, Windham, Vermont voters decided last week to transfer ownership of the community’s elementary school to the town. A committee will decide on its future use moving forward.

Windham, Vermont has a population of 550.

Des Moines Public Schools Ends Some Staff Support Groups after Trump’s Anti-DEI Directives (Des Moines Register)

The Des Moines Register reported this week that,

“Des Moines Public Schools has discontinued employee groups aimed at giving staff members a safe space to gather following a directive from the U.S. Department of Education that schools end or curtail most diversity, equity and inclusion programs.”

“On Monday, the district’s recruitment and retention coordinator Theron Hobbs sent an email to the Des Moines schools’ affinity group leaders notifying them the U.S. Department of Education’s edict no longer allows DMPS to ‘provide funding to District-run employee affinity groups.’”

…

“Black/African American, LGBTQ+, international educators and Hispanic/Latinx affinity groups are all affected by the change.”

Trump Has Made English the Official Language. What That Means for Schools (EducationWeek)

After President Donald Trump signed an executive order designating English as the official language of the United States, EducationWeek reported that,

“K-12 educators in the United States are still federally required to support English learners’ acquisition of the English language, regardless of any official national language designation.”

But, “[w]hile experts who spoke with Education Week said the executive order won’t immediately affect English-learner programs, they said it could present long-term challenges and opportunities for meeting multilingual students’ needs.”

“According to experts, two key aspects of English-learner support that could be affected are: schools’ translation and interpretation services for students and families; and whether states and educators shift toward more English-only instruction, or invest in research-backed multilingual programs, such as dual-language immersion, which incorporates instruction in both English and another language throughout the school day.”

Gulf of America or Gulf of Mexico? How Teachers Are Handling Trump’s Name Change (EducationWeek)

EducationWeek reported this week that,

“One his first day in office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.”

“The decision has sparked controversy among world leaders and journalism organizations. Others wondered if renaming the gulf was possible. But where do educators fall on this issue?”

“Teachers – especially geography teachers – are not sure how they should refer to the Gulf in class as the curriculum is decided by the state, not at the federal level. And some are worried about the feelings the name change could bring up among students.”

For someone who professes the importance of the federal government to relinquish public education decisions to state and local authorities, Donald Trump’s renaming of the Gulf of Mexico, along with referring to Canada as “the 51^st state” and Justin Trudeau as “Governor,” is worrisome. Why would the leader of the free world be focused on such things?

As CNN’s Jake Tapper said this week, “Let’s see how we refer to that body of water once hurricane season rolls around.”

That’s the Friday News Roundup for this week. Til Monday. SVB